The number of foreigners going through ceremonies to claim British citizenship has soared in the South West as Brexit looms.

There were 4,605 citizenship ceremonies in the region in 2016, the most recent data from the Home Office shows.

That is an increase of a third, or 32.1% compared to 2015, when there were 3,485.

The Home Office invites applicants to attend a citizenship ceremony once their application for British citizenship has been approved. It is the final step on the journey to becoming a British citizen.

The ceremony must be attended within 90 days of approval being given if the applicant is over 18 and living in Britain. Otherwise, they may have to make a new application.

While the South West data provided by the Home Office is for all foreigners applying for British citizenship - not just those from the EU - the rise appears to be driven by Europeans who could be affected by new immigration rules after Brexit.

Nationally, the proportion of people applying for British citizenship who are from the EU has increased from less than a third to nearly half.

Some 67,580 of the 135,912 people who applied for British citizenship in the 12 months to September this year were from Europe.

That compares to 44,554 people out of the 147,137 who applied the previous year.

People from Poland accounted for 6,179 applications in the most recent 12-month period, or roughly one in 22.

That was the most of any nationality and up from 4,295 (one in 34) the previous year.

Italians were second with 2,950 applications (one in 46 of the total), up from 1,109 (one in 133).

Romania was next with 2,713 applications (one in 50), up from 1,937 (one in 75).

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A spokesperson for the3million, a not-for-profit group which campaigns to support the rights of EU citizens to work in Britain, said: "It is now over 500 days of limbo for EU citizens.

"We have little trust in the Home Office and because of the ongoing uncertainty more and more people see British citizenship as the only way to guarantee they can live a normal life after Brexit.

"However, this route is not open to everyone. Some EU countries do not allow dual citizenship and the Home Office currently rejects a third of applications for Permanent Residence - the prerequisite for citizenship.

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"We are particularly worried for students, carers, retired and vulnerable people who might not qualify under current British rules.

"We urge the British government to end this uncertainty and guarantee our full rights as well as those of the British living in the EU. We reject the current proposal of 'settled status' which would not fully guarantee those rights and have proposed an alternative."